BBC News reports that a number of policemen and civilians have been killed in a twin suicide bomb attack in the Syrian capital, Damascus. According to the report, Interior Minister Mohammed Shaar was quoted to have said that one assailant blew himself up at the main entrance to a police station in the central Midan district.
In his statement, the Interior Minister further disclosed that a second detonated his explosive belt after being shot by officers on the first floor of the building.
“There was no immediate claim for the bombing, which was the first such attack in the city since July.
“Similar bombings have been carried out by militants from so-called Islamic State or Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, a jihadist alliance formerly known as al-Nusra Front.”
However, Mr Shaar, according to the BBC News, did not say how many people were killed in Monday’s attack.
The UK-based activist monitoring group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, reported that at least 11 died, among them six police officers, while the pro-government al-Mayadeen television channel put the death toll at 10, BBC News reported.
The Syrian Observatory also said that a car bomb had been detonated during the attack, but Mr Shaar did not mention a third explosion.
Manal, a 28-year-old teacher who lives in Midan, heard at least two blasts.
“I was coming back from work when I heard the sound of an explosion, it was around 14:30, I didn’t know what it was, and then there was another explosion a few minutes later and buildings shook,” she told AFP news agency.
“Afterwards I heard gunfire, which usually happens to get people to move out of the way and clear the road so ambulances can get through to retrieve the injured.”
Reporter: Ridwan A Olayiwola
